photonscience

Having driven both of them, here's my two cents. The 997S is a fabulous car - it has everything going for it except - the incredible rush of the turbo torque. Stock 996tt makes a 997S feel slow, particularly in the mid range. 996tt prices are really depressed and you can easily bring a turbo reliably up to 500+ hp fairly inexpensively. BTW, the 997S feels much more tossible than a turbo in the curves, but the turbo's grip in the curves is extraordinary. How do you spend your 100K?

My decision - turbo

Carrera GT

My decision: both: 993 Turbo and 997S. I think the 996 Turbo and the 997S are on similar depreciation curves.

If all-out speed is the objective, as you say, simple mods and the 993 and 996 Turbos can turn a reliable 500-520 hp & ftlb. The real appeal of the 997 is the handling performance. I'm still excited by the idea of the reported 'ring lap times of the 997S compared to any 996, especially the GT3.

Moogle

New GT3.

PogueMoHone

Well, for driver involvement the GT3 is the clear winner.

For cruising, I would go with the Turbo. the engine block has been more more reliable the the 996 and reports on the turbo to date is that thay have been bullit proof (mine was). Will the 997 suffer from RMS issues..who knows?

Once you get involved with Porsche handling, you'll want more and more control over the input, and that will ultimately drive you back towards the GT3, and then the GT2

rss997

But the GT3 has no sunroof....

chris walrod

I vote for the GT3 as well. Its the best combo between modern styling and bulletproof mechanicals of old. Drysump oiling, proven transmission etc.

For classic styling AND bulletproof mechanicals...993TT would be more satisfying

csertich

Another vote for the GT3.

djantlive

Turbo cars are very fast indeed. The only problem is engine life. Force fed engines will not last as long as NA cars.

I hate to get rid of a turbo at only 120k. I tend to keep cars 10+ yrs and therefore I chose a NA instead of turbo. I do miss the turbo kick though

Moogle

i've seen a few high-mileage 993/996 turbos and the owners havent reported anything out of the ordinary for a car with 100k+ miles that would be associated iwth the car being turbocarged vs normally aspirated.

sure the insurance maintinence may be marginally more, but thats not a reason not to choose the car.

however, for your price, 100k, thats just ASKING for the GT3. pureest car in porsches entire range at the moment.

for more all around driver though, a used 996 turbo can be had for 80k~ and you still have 20k left for mods/trackdays!.

can't go wrong with either decision.

one more thing to consider is the notoriously abbysmal ground clearance of the GT3... you may have to do some route planning before every trip

97tt newbie

Despite my screen name (97ttnewbie) I now have a GT3 after parting recently with my 993 turbo and seriously contemplating the 996 turbo. Lots to consider here so let me start by saying that that I love all the cars and I don't seem to have the will power to give up a p car as a daily driver. The GT3 clearance is a pain...my black plastic piece is a scraped up mess and had to be popped back on recently. However at 8200 rpms, the scream of the motor and the lightness and feel of the car do outweigh that issue.

My GT3 keeps right up with my turbo out of the hole as proven by my buddy who bought it and is just dying to beat me---and the GT3 is turning better track times though not by much do to my inability to drive the car well! I absolutely cannot imagine giving up the rush of power in the turbo or GT3 for a 997. In my view the new improvments just dont get the car up to that level. Two guys I know who sell them at different dealers were very frank with me (in part cause they know I like turbos and GT3 cars) regarding the 997. Both said the car is luke warm...it just is not a big leap forward in any regard and one flat out told me that he preffered the handling of the 996 over the S cause its lighter and a hell of a lot cheaper at this point. So I hope this helps. I have loved the hell of deciding and now that I have the GT3 I kind of miss the agony of it all! Good luck and whatever you do drive the **** out of both of them before you decide--its the only way to really tell what stokes you the most!!

Carrera GT

Long live the Turbo. DEVEK sees a different 993 Turbo almost every week. Some pristine, some "rid hard" but engine life as such is not an issue. The turbos give up and leak oil through the spindle seals. The suspension dies every 20-30K miles and the clutch will expire anywhere from 30K to 60K give or take driving conditions. The V belts wear out, there's various leaks and squeaks, all in common with the NA cars. The engine itself, if not abused with lugging, cold running or hot shutdown, is a proven endurance engine and a long-lived street engine and the drive train is equally durable if the driver resists the temptation to launch hard in 1st gear.

With my allegiances stated, I also think it's fair and reasonable to expect a 3.6 engine turning 400-500hp will show signs of wear as it passes 100K miles. Worn out? No way. Expensive to rebuild when the time comes. You betcha!

I look forward to putting 100K+ miles on a 993 Turbo!

Cheers,

fahren affair

996tt's have engine failures too, trojanman among other have replaced theirs. andial in so. cal, probably handles the lion's share of 993tt rebuilds in the country, and they've told me that all tt's get tired by 100k miles. they'll run fine, but down on hp, substantially so.

Moogle

https://rennlist.com/forums/996-turbo-forum/168878-picked-up-something-wonderful.html

yetis

Neither, I would go with a 996 C4S with X51, aero kit, aftermarket exhaust/intake and a PSS9... (drool....) I would also bet that with the x51, a ECU remapping would generate a few more hps.

I am with djantlive, as much as I like forced induction, I prefer normally aspirated for longevity. There is no way you can tell me a TT cranked up to 550 HP has the lifecycle of a normally aspirated engine.

VECCA

What do you mean by "hot shutdown"?